‘Yolanda’ kills 433 in Basey town in Samar

Western Samar Governor Sharee Ann Tan said on Monday that at least 433 people have been confirmed dead in the coastal town of Basey, which is the worst hit town in the province of Samar.

Tan also said this number can still rise as rescuers continue to pluck bodies from rubbles and mud.

Interviewed by a local radio station in Cebu, Tan said only the towns of Basey and Marabot were badly hit by super typhoon Yolanda.

She said some towns in Western Samar sustained damage to properties but casualties have not yet been reported. The focus of the rescue efforts, she said, is the town of Basey.

“What happened in Basey was almost similar to what took place in Tacloban,” Tan said during the radio interview.

In Cebu, Vice Governor Agnes Magpale said relief operations have already reached almost all of the affected towns of northern Cebu except for the town of Tabuelan, which remained unreachable as of Monday.

Magpale said the relief operations have been done in a speedy manner in order to immediately assist those families who are running out of food and water.

The number of people in Cebu Province that perished in the recent storm has reached 49 based on records from the Police Regional Office (PRO) 7.

Minda Morante, Regional Director of the Office of the Civil Defense, said they continually update and verify their data because the numbers that reach them also come from the LGUs.

Damaged communication services have also made it difficult to coordinate with LGUs, especially those in the northernmost tip of Cebu island that are most badly hit.

PRO-7 records indicate that nine people died in Bogo City, seven in Bantayan Island, four in Medellin, three in Madridejos, two each in Sogod and San Remigio towns, and one each in Balamban and Lapu-Lapu City.

The Department of Education (DepEd)-Cebu Province announced that there will be no classes for five days beginning today in one city and 13 towns of northern Cebu devastated by super typhoon Yolanda last Friday.

DepEd-Cebu Province schools division superintendent Arden Monisit said there are no classes in Bogo City and in the towns of Sogod and Borbon, Tabogon, Medellin, San Remigio, Daanbantayan in mainland Cebu and Madridejos, Sta. Fe and Bantayan in Bantayan island from Nov. 11 to 15.

The same is also true for the towns of San Francisco, Tudela, Poro and Pilar in Camotes island.